Self Inflicted Lonliness
by Mizuki Inuzuka
Summary: Ino couldn't love him. If her step-mother ever found out she'd never see him again. So she lied. She swore that she loved Sasuke. Now, years later, and Sasuke's with Sakura. What she never knew was that he loved her just as much. And he's always been waiting on her. But problems arise and she tries to kill herself. Can he save her in time? Will they find out their true feelings?


A/N: This has been lying around for a while now so I decided to finish it up and post it. There's no sex cuz I wanted to focus a bit more on the emotions. Not sure how good this was but I gave it my best shot! Some parts might be very cliché. Hope you guys enjoy it and reviews are always welcome!

~Page Break~

Naruto was pissed. Scratch that. He was beyond pissed. Why you ask? Well, it was simple, really. It was his party yet he was the only one not enjoying it. Even his success in becoming the Shichidaime was not enough to cover his loneliness.

Everyone had hooked up, leaving him to feel like a third wheel in his own damn party. Sai and Kankuro had gotten together, Neji and Gaara, Kiba and Hinata, Sakura and Sasuke, Lee and Chouji, Shikamaru and Temari, Tenten and Shino. The threesomes were Hana, Kurenai and Anko, Kakashi, Iruka and Shizune, and even Konohamaru, Udon and Moegi.

The only person who was single was Ino and he was sure that she still hated him considering that she avoided him at all costs. Right now, she was on his balcony, pretending to get some fresh air but he knew that she just wanted to be away from the lovey dovey atmosphere inside.

He was feeling the same way but after all, he was the host.

~Page Break~

Ino stared into space as the sound of kissing came from inside. She was still considering why she even bothered to try socializing when all it did for her was make her loneliness intensify. Her parents thought that she was a failure and never bothered to notice her. Since her mother died when she was a baby, her stepmother always controlled her life and her father was too dumb to see it.

No one even talked to her anymore, too absorbed with their other half to notice her. Even though she was the loudmouthed girl who used to be at the center of attention, she was just the shell of a human being now. She hardly talked to anyone and tried to disappear at every social gathering that she attended. So why did she attend? She attended in hopes that someone would notice her. Or at least notice the scars on her wrists, to tell her to stop. That someone cared for her.

She kept her hardened gaze directed at the Hokage Mountains, specifically at the Shichidaime. Naruto. She knew that he was going through the same thing as her but she avoided him at all costs. He was the one that she was truly afraid to face. Why? Because she was always too afraid of rejection and she had a crush on him ever since she was a kid but she always had to hide it because she was forbidden to talk to him as a kid. In a way, she supposed that Hinata was braver than her. But on the other hand, Hinata had never truly loved him.

~Page Break~

"Why aren't you enjoying the party?" asked Naruto as he leaned on the railings next to her.

She jumped about a foot in the air before turning to face him; blushing and stammering like a shy schoolgirl, "N-Naru-to! You nearly gave me a heart attack! Um, well, you see…"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." he smiled warmly and her heart melted at the sight, making her less coherent.

"I-I, what I mean is, um, I was just-"

"In need of some fresh air?" supplied Naruto.

"Yes!"

He laughed heartily, "No need to get so flustered Ino. I was just making sure you're okay. It's my duty as the host after all."

"Haha, I'm sorry, I was just thinking about some things and you caught me off guard."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead." he said, surprised that she was talking to him.

"Well, I mean, this may be personal but, um…"

"Just ask me. If it's too personal I'll tell you."

"Well, what do you like in a girl? I mean, you were always chasing after Sakura but Sasuke took her away from you. If you could date your dream girl, what'd she be like?"

"Well, I guess I never really did like Sakura but if I was to date my dream girl, she'd be someone who could understand me I guess. Someone who wouldn't judge me because of the Kyuubi and who could be there for me. And she'd be pretty of course. Prettier than all the girls in this village. Why do you ask?"

"I was just curious. I mean, I've always thought that I liked Sasuke. I guess I never truly liked him though. I was just wondering what it'd be like to have a dream person. I guess, that if I were to choose, I'd like someone strong and kind, who could understand me and be there when I need to talk to someone. He'd be handsome too. Way better looking than Sasuke of course. And with a nicer attitude."

She could never let him find out that her crush on Sasuke was all a desperate attempt to quell any rumors about her crush on him. At the time, she had started that rumor because one of the girls had asked her if she liked Naruto one day when she was staring at him. When she denied it, the other girls asked if it was Sasuke because he was standing next to Naruto. When Sakura confronted her about it she had agreed only because her love was so strong and she could not afford her step-mother finding out about it.

"Ha, I guess not everyone likes the last Uchiha."

"Of course not. I'd want a handsomer guy than him anyway! And with a better attitude too!"

"Good luck with that. For one, I doubt that you'd find someone better looking than Sasuke. After all, he is the best looking guy in Konoha. At least, all the girls seem to like him."

She looked at him again, noticing the way his eyes shone in the moonlight and the way it enhanced his beast-like features. It was an amazing sight. His deep whisker like marks gave him a predatory look and it made her heartbeat accelerate.

"Naruto, don't underestimate yourself. There are many persons better looking than Sasuke just those fan girls never see it. For example, take…let's see, Kiba! Yeah, take Kiba, he's got abs and that tanned skin of his…his tattoos and his easygoing personality…he is way better than Sasuke."

"Seems that I should warn Hinata." he joked.

"Ha! As if you'd do that! I'm sure you'd love to have her, huh N-Naruto-k-kun?" she countered.

He laughed again, "Maybe. But maybe I like someone else."

"I wonder about that." she said, looking into his eyes.

"About what?" interrupted a voice from the doorway.

"Oh, Kiba, it's you. I was just talking to Naruto. What do you want?" she asked, turning to face him.

"I was looking for the both of you actually. Everyone wants to play a round or two of Truth or Dare: Spin the Bottle version."

"We'll play." said Naruto quickly, before she could answer.

She smiled softly and followed them inside. Maybe life wasn't so bad after all.

~Page Break~

Since everyone was drunk from the sake they were drinking in celebration of Naruto's victory, they gathered in a sloppy circle and Kiba called dibs on spinning the bottle. It landed on Ino.

"Truth or Dare?"

"Truth."

"Hrm…Aha! I know everyone's been dying to know this. Are you still a virgin?"

Ino blushed and looked around. She could tell that everyone was interested in this news. Even Naruto had sat up straighter when he heard the question.

"Um…I-I…uh…I guess…"

"Answer the damn question!" said Sakura, bursting with curiosity.

"Yes!"

Everyone slouched back down in disappointment except for Naruto. He smiled at her and looked towards the bottle.

She got the hint and spun it. It landed on no other than Sasuke.

"Dare." he said before she even asked.

"Got just the thing! Streak!"

He looked shocked for a second and then smirked, "I never knew you still liked me Ino. Wanna have a threesome?"

"What? Eww…Not me Sasuke! I would never! And with Forehead too?! I just dared you that cuz I know she likes to see you and cuz I know you're homophobic!"

Sasuke visibly paled at that and looked around to find many lecherous gazes locked on him.

"The great Uchiha scared to streak?" sneered Kankuro.

"Oh hell no." retaliated Sasuke standing up and beginning to strip.

He stripped real fast and put his clothes back on in record time, giving everyone a glimpse of his so-called perfect body.

"That was NOT streaking but it can pass. It had the basic concept." said Ino in a bored voice as Sasuke reached for the bottle.

It landed on none other than Kankuro.

"Dare." he said before Sasuke asked.

"Hn. I dare you to wear a dress, make up, the works and ask Iruka if he would fuck you in front of Kakashi."

"What the fuck man?!" screamed Kankuro girlishly while everyone else rolled on the floor laughing until they cried.

Sasuke just smirked as Kankuro grudgingly asked Temari to help him out. After she had forced him into a short dress and did his hair and face, everyone followed him to Kakashi's house where he, Iruka and Shizune stayed.

Kankuro wasted time as his nerves and pride wouldn't let him do suck a degrading task but taking one look back and seeing everyone's expressions, he gathered is courage and knocked the door. Everyone else hid their presence as Kakashi answered, wearing only his boxers and looking extremely irritated.

"What is it-" Kakashi cut off as he took in Kankuro's appearance, "Why are you dressed like that?"

"Um, is…is Iruka-san in?"

"Yeah, why?"

"I need to speak to him."

"Right."

Kakashi stared at him suspiciously, not moving to call Iruka.

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"Aren't you going to call Iruka-san?"

"Iruka and Shizune are in no condition to see anyone right now but I know you guys are probably playing truth or dare at Naruto's. Isn't that right Sasuke?" called Kakashi.

"You know me too well sensei." he replied, revealing himself.

"Sasuke-teme! You ruined it!" said Naruto, also revealing his presence.

"Sorry for bothering you Kakashi-san!" said Sakura, quickly showing up and pulling the boys with her, "We'll be leaving now!"

With that everyone followed her lead and returned to Naruto's place.

"Well, that was a waste!" commented Kiba as they all resumed their positions in the make-shift circle.

Kankuro spun the bottle and it landed on Naruto.

"Truth." he said quickly, cutting Kankuro off before he began as Kankuro had done to Sasuke the previous round.

"Damn you!" said Kankuro, "What is your most secret desire? Be truthful"

Naruto looked shocked, not quite expecting the question but glanced at Ino discreetly and replied, "I most secretly desire to be with a certain someone and no, you can't ask who. Only one question per turn!"

With that, he stuck his tongue out and spun the bottle.

It landed on Ino again.

"I'm not picking Truth again!"

"Okay okay, I guess that leaves us with dare…hmm…I know! Ino, I dare you to kiss Sakura, tongue and all, for 2 minutes."

"WHAT?" she shrieked, "I am NOT kissing Forehead-girl! Uh uh! I'd prefer kiss Hinata."

"Well that's nice to know." said Kiba.

"That does not mean anything dog boy! I just mean I can deal with kissing her more than I can deal with kissing my childhood best friend!"

By this time, Sakura was looking a tad offended, Hinata was blushing like crazy and Naruto was rolling on the ground laughing his life out.

Ino just sat quietly until Naruto regained his composure and looked at her. Seeing her expression, he promptly declared that he didn't want to play anymore. Kiba looked majorly confused but he declared that he and Hinata had to get home as his mom wanted them over for breakfast early the next day.

At that declaration, everyone else suddenly remembered that it was Sunday night and they had to report in for work the next day. Although many of them had missions, the few who didn't were their companions and wanted to spend some time with them so they all left after once again congratulating Naruto on become the Shichidaime.

"Do you need some help cleaning up?" asked Ino, as she had stayed back without anyone noticing except for Naruto.

"Nope, but thanks for offering." said Naruto as he made some Kage Bunshin to clean up the place, "However, you are welcome to hang out if you would like."

"Maybe I should just leave."

"No! I mean, er, it's not like if I have anything else to do. It's just me here anyways."

"If you insist."

"I do insist." he smiled.

"Fine, what do you want to do?"

"Well, there's some sake I was hiding." he winked.

"Bring it on." she declared.

~Page Break~

"Ugh!"

The bright morning sunshine woke Ino with a headache. The alcohol's effect was taking its toll on her now that she was awake. Her head pounded as she looked around the unfamiliar room.

"You awake?" asked Naruto, walking in with a glass of water and two pills and only wearing a pair of pants, "Take these. It'll help with the hangover."

Blushing heavily, she gratefully took the pills before inquiring as to why exactly she was in Naruto's bed.

"Well, you looked so relaxed after you passed out last night that I couldn't bear to wake you up so I brought you here and took the couch instead." was the reply.

"Y-you were coherent enough to do that?" she asked.

"Well, I should probably let you know this… Kyuubi negates the effects of alcohol as soon as it enters my body so I was pretty much sober all night."

Ino groaned miserably, sure that she had said something stupid to the Shichidaime while in her drunken state.

"Don't worry." said Naruto comfortingly, "You didn't tell me anything stupid."

"Are you a mind reader?"

"Wish I was hon. Anyways, you've got the day off today haven't you?" he asked as she sat up.

"Yeah… why'd you ask?"

"Well, I know you're still sleepy so if you want you can stay here… I'll go prepare something for lunch."

"Don't you have your Hokage duties to attend to?"

"I am attending to them Ino… Are you forgetting that I have millions of Shadow Clones at my disposal?"

"Right…" she groaned as she flopped back onto the bed and snuggled into the sheets, inhaling his scent while drifting into a deep sleep.

When she awoke again, it was because she was well rested and in desperate need of a shower. She slowly sat up on Naruto's bed, rubbing her eyes wearily and going downstairs to look for him.

"Ah, someone's finally up!" he said from behind her as she rounded the corner leading to the kitchen.

"N-Naru-Naruto!" she squeaked in surprise, jumping.

"I didn't mean to scare you like that." he chuckled, "There's onigiri if you're hungry."

"I am thanks. But, by any chance, do you have a spare toothbrush?"

He laughed before leading her to the washroom and after a few minutes of searching in the cabinets, he handed her a brand new orange toothbrush.

"Old habits die hard huh?" she smiled, accepting the toothbrush and shooing him to the kitchen while she washed up.

After joining him for an extremely late breakfast (aka lunch), she announced that she had to go home to take a much needed shower. Since there was no excuse for him to make her stay, Naruto sadly watched her go before he began cleaning up the parts of the house that he hadn't already tackled.

~Page Break~

Ino left Naruto's house a bit happier than when she had entered and made her way to her apartment. However, she did not expect to find her stepmother already there and waiting for her.

"YOU FUCKING WHORE! WHERE THE FUCK DID YOU STAY LAST NIGHT?!" was the screech that greeted her.

"I-"

"WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?! DON'T FUCKING ANSWER ME BACK YOUNG LADY!"

"If-"

"SHUT UP YOU BITCH! YOUR FATHER WORKED SO HARD TO RAISE YOU AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY HIM? YOU DON'T VISIT, YOU DON'T CALL, YOU DON'T EVEN FUCKING SEND HIM A LETTER! YET WHERE WERE YOU WHEN I CAME OVER TO SEE IF YOU WERE DOING ALRIGHT? HUH? NOT EVEN FUCKING HOME!"

"How o-"

"I stayed here all night and you never came home! Were you having fun? Which man did you fuck? You insolent brat! I-"

Ino didn't wait to hear anymore. She ran into her room, got the clothes she needed and locked herself in the bathroom.

Why did this always happen to her? Her stepmother only came to look for her the days when she decided to hang out with her friends. The ONE fucking night she spent that seemed to cheer her up and she is faced with this shit.

Crying uncontrollably, she got her razor and began slicing new abrasions on her damaged skin. She turned on the water and looked on as the blood dripped into the tub, the drops quickly diffusing and tingeing the water pink.

~Page Break~

Naruto, having cleaned the entire house, was bored. He supposed that he should go stay in the Hokage office as Ino was no longer keeping him company. In doing so, he ended up taking a longer route to the Tower which happened to pass in front of Ino's residence.

Whistling a tune, he walked past the place at a moderate pace as he was in no hurry to take up his duties and also because the Shadow Clones were taking care of things for him. As he strolled leisurely along the street in front of Ino's place, a slight breeze blew and his sensitive nose picked up a whiff of blood.

Getting a tad bit worried, he made his way into the building and up to the 2nd floor where he knew Ino's apartment was located. As he was walking up the stairs, he noticed Ino's step-mother walking out of Ino's room. The scent of blood became stronger as he quickly made his way through the door.

"Ino? Hello? Ino!" he called out, following the smell of blood to where he suspected was the bathroom.

"Ino!" heard Ino as she regained consciousness briefly.

"'M 'ere." she managed to say before halfway passing out from the blood loss again.

~Page Break~

Naruto faintly heard Ino reply followed by a loud thump. Without thinking further, he slammed open the door with his enhanced strength only to be greeted by the sight of his beloved drowning in a tub of bloody water.

Letting out a cry of frustration, he did the only thing he could think of, which was to pull the plug to drain the water and to pump healing chakra into Ino. He did not even notice her nakedness until he was sure not a scar remained to mar her beautiful skin. He also noticed some clean clothes which she had put aside to most likely change into. Gathering the clothes, he gently dried her wet skin and dressed her before lifting her and placing her on her bed.

~Page Break~

Ino awoke with a pounding headache and a stuffy nose, feeling as though she was being burned alive. Prying her eyelids apart with heavy fingers, she looked around to see where she was. It looked like her room but then she noticed that someone was on the bed with her and they had their arms wrapped around her, causing the unbearable heat.

Breathing faster, she slowly turned to face the person. Naruto? Why was Naruto in her bed? She didn't remember what…oh, Naruto must have found her after she nearly killed herself.

She let out a choked sob as the tears returned along with the deep pain in her heart. Why did he save her? Did he think that she deserved to be punished? That death was too good for her? It's not like she had anything to live for.

~Page Break~

Naruto woke up to the sound of muffled sobs, immediately getting worried for Ino as he saw that she was the source of the silent cries.

"Ino?"

She gave no indication of having heard him so he gently placed his hand on her face and tilted it to look at him. Smiling slightly through her tears, she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his chest. He softly cooed comforting words in her ear as he gently stroked her back with one hand and embraced her with the other.

After a while, she stopped crying and just enjoyed his comforting presence, breathing in his scent deeply while he continued to comfort her.

"Ino?"

"Hmm?"

"Care to tell me what happened?"

"Nothing."

At that, he sat up straight and pulled her by her shoulders so that he could see her face.

"Do you seriously expect me to believe that nothing happened when I find the love of my life in a bathtub full of blood and she wakes up crying after I've saved her? And let's not mention the scars on her wrists!"

"L-love?" she choked out.

"I-I'm…"

Tilting her chin again so that she was looking directly into his eyes, he took a deep breath, "Yes, love. I've loved you ever since I first saw you Ino. You hadn't known me then. I was hiding from the villagers and I saw you picking flowers in a clearing. You looked so cute sniffing the flowers."

"B-but!"

"Kids always pick on the one they like don't they? I know you may not feel the same about me but I assure you Ino, I _do_ care. And I would really like to know what your step-mother did to you to cause such a reaction."

"N-Naruto. I-I've always liked you as well. Did you know that I've always had eyes only for you after meeting you? How much years have we wasted hiding our feelings?" she laughed incredulously before continuing, "I never once thought that you'd return my feelings. I'm stupid. I-"

"What? I've always thought you liked Sasuke!"

"Naruto, that was a lie I'd made up so that my step-mother, who had warned me to not talk to you the day I met you, wouldn't transfer me from the school."

He hugged her enthusiastically and held her tightly to his chest.

"We have each other now. But please tell me why you tried to kill yourself! I don't want to imagine what would have happened if I had arrived a bit later."

"I guess I was lonely and the words that she threw at me got to me. I thought it'd be better off if I died. I'd been cutting since I was 15 and no one ever noticed. No one told me to stop. All my friends paired off and no one had time for me anymore. I had to deal with it all on my own. It just got to be too much."

"I'll never let you have to deal with her on your own again love. I wanted to ask you about those scars since you first started cutting but you'd always avoid me and I thought you'd tell me that it wasn't my business so I stayed away. I see now that I should have confronted you about it."

"It's not your fault! And now you know. So help me to forget her! Please baby. I've waited for you for so long."

"Can you wait a little til tomorrow night?"

"Why? What's wrong with now?"

"Nothing at all. I just wanted to ask you to marry me. We can be the first of our friends to get married! And it can all be done tomorrow."

"Really? You'd want to be stuck with me for the rest of your life?"

"No, I want to be with you forever, in this lifetime and all the others that follow."

She started crying again, but this time, she was smiling beneath the tears as she kissed him and exclaimed "Yes! A million times yes!"

~Page Break~

The wedding was amazing for one put together overnight but Naruto's clones had outdone themselves. Everyone had a day off from missions and even Gaara and his siblings and their lovers were present for the ceremony as they had yet to return home to Sunagakure from the celebrations of Naruto being made Shichidaime.

Ino's father had agreed to the wedding and had finally seen the evilness of his wife as she vehemently opposed his agreement to Naruto's request. He was very glad to divorce her and leave her to be imprisoned under the Shichidaime's orders for abuse. He was ecstatic for a chance to get to know his daughter once more and he was very horrified to find out what had transpired that day.

The wedding was beautiful and Tsunade did a wonderful job in legally binding the couple.


End file.
